LCBO launches innovation hub in Kitchener to explore new technology

The Liquor Control Board of Ontario, the government agency that manages alcohol sales across the province, is tapping into Kitchener-Waterloo’s startup community as it seeks to modernize the way it interacts with customers at its retail stores.

Even though the LCBO already has an innovation lab at its downtown Toronto headquarters, the scope of development there has been limited because of what the LCBO admits is a lagging approach to problem-solving.

The LCBO, one of Ontario’s prized cash cows, has realized that a lot of the technology used by private-sector retailers is coming from innovation hubs rather than corporate headquarters. It has opened a small space at tech-hub Communitech called LCBO Next, where it hopes to pluck ideas from entrepreneurs who are already ahead of the game.

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